A review by in_love_with_bookish
The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

 
I do wonder if she’s acting just like I am. How much of what people say is genuine and how much is politeness? Is anyone really living their life or are we all reading lines from a giant script written by other people?


I was under the impression that this was Quan Diep’s book, I feel like I was wrong because the story feels unbalanced to me. Honestly, I’m a little disappointed that we didn’t get to see much of Quan’s story compared to the female MC.

Having specific expectations out of a story can really hinder your enjoyment and that’s exactly what happened with The Heart Principle. It’s still a great intimate story but I just wanted to know Quan deeply as I came to know the other characters that came before him.

The book revolves around Anna Sun, a violinist who achieved huge career success with an accidental viral YouTube Video and who’s now struggling with burnout as she tries to recapture that moment of pure genius and beauty. Anna is also under a lot of pressure because of her boyfriend who suddenly wants an open relationship.

Hearts aren’t designed to feel anything too intensely for too long, be it joy, sorrow, or anger. Everything passes in time. All colors fade.


Exhausted, angry, and hurt, Anna decides to embrace this change in her love life and embark on a string of one-night stands. Enter tattooed, motorcycle-riding Quan Diep who is not who seems to be.

What starts as just a one-night stand develops into a genuine relationship that gives both characters strength not only to open up about their vulnerabilities but also to be intimate, brave, and honest in ways they’ve never been before.

No one should need a diagnosis in order to be compassionate to themselves.


Even though this is a beautiful emotional romance novel about two souls coming together and connecting deeply and effortlessly, it’s also more than just a romance. The book deals with a lot of important subjects like Anna being diagnosed with ASD later in her life and having to make sense of what’s really behind the struggles she’s been through all her life. Not only that but Anna is also struggling with taking care of her terminally ill father and how draining seeing him in pain as well as navigating her complicated relationship with her sister and mother. Quan is also struggling with body image and insecurities. Both are under a lot of expectations and it's draining them both.

For that’s the only place where true perfection exists—the blank page. Nothing I actually do can compete with the boundless potential of what I could do. But if I allow the fear of imperfection to trap me in perpetual beginnings, I’ll never create anything again.


It’s totally clear that this book was written from a personal experience and it has so much heart and feelings and raw vulnerability. But as much as Anna's character was developed brilliantly, Quan’s character arc on the other hand felt like an afterthought. There was this huge lack of balance when it comes to developing the two main characters and it actually kept me from falling in love with the book.

I think the author favored Anna’s character so much and so clearly that I felt that Quan’s issues felt unseen and neglected and that made me feel conflicted in an upsetting way. I think people go through different struggles and to put one struggle way ahead of another in terms of exploring it and giving it the space and the nuance it demands feels wrong to me somehow.

I can't brush it aside just because I don't understand it. I can't place judgement on it. Pain is pain. I know what it's like to hurt and for others not to understand.


Anyway, The Heart Principle is still a great romance novel that deals with so many themes and issues in an intimate honest, and raw way that left me feeling hollowed out at times and full of hope and beauty at others. The emotions are real, the struggles are deep and the emotional connection we feel between its two main characters is as genuine as it gets. Helen Hoang gave it her all and it clearly shows.

The only good thing this broken heart of mine can feel is love for you.
 
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